Good morning everyone and a very Happy New Year in ‘Year Through the Bible’.

What an amazing time I had last year participating in the One-Year-Readings of my Bible. I learned so much and was stretched in ways I didn’t know possible through dedication, commitment, and perseverance just to name a few.

This year my husband and I decided we would like to read through the Bible in chronological order. We believe it will be an amazing journey as page by page we stroll along through generations of history providing us with direction, encouragement and love all the while putting events and people in the same time frame with one another. We invite you to walk with us. 

It goes without saying we will begin in Genesis after all “In the beginning”, right?!, we will also get our first look at 1 Chronicles. It is believed by Jews and Christians that Moses is the author and compiler of the Pentateuch, a five-volumed book which includes Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Book of Genesis does not state when it was written, however  most agree it was likely to be penned between 1440 and 1400 B.C., between the time Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt and his death.

Genesis 1:1 is the very first place we see the name God in the Bible, “God created”. The word for God here in the Hebrew is Eloheim, it means “Strong One” and it is the plural of El, so right off the bat we are seeing the Trinity. Verse 2 begins the account of the heavens and earth. Though these words are so very familiar to us and easy to quickly pass over, I would encourage you to take your time with them. Envision them, imagine and contemplate what each step would actually look like. Feel the wonder and the glory of it all. Oh how BIG our God is, He has done great things.

1 Chronicles is written by Ezra and the history told in Chronicles begins with Adam, the story is then carried forward, almost entirely by genealogical lists, down to the founding of the Israelite monarchy, so though it sometimes gets VERY hard to read all the “sons of” try to stay with it, I have found myself more than once thinking “Ohhh, he was her Uncle?” or something to that effect and again, stating the obvious, God has it there for a reason.

I hope and pray you are as excited about this year’s readings as Matt and I are. God will richly bless you for each and every moment you give him.

God Bless you all.